Reverend Franklin Graham is disturbed that the US government appears to be coddling Muslims and disregarding the needs of Christians and followers of other major religions. He said this is quite evident in Orlando, Florida, where authorities decided to spend thousands of dollars to build a prayer room at the city's airport to accommodate the needs of Muslims.
"You won't believe this one," he wrote on his Facebook page. "A public airport in the United States spending $250,000 to open a prayer room for Muslims? Orlando International Airport is doing just that, and it's scheduled to open September 1! Let's call this what it is—a mosque."
Graham said the airport already established an interfaith prayer room back in 1983, complete with prayer rugs for Muslim worshippers. But it seemed this was still not enough to serve Muslim air passengers, prompting the authorities to build a bigger "mosque."
"How loud do you think the objections would be today if they spent $250,000 in taxpayer money to build a new prayer room exclusively for evangelical Christians? Or for Jews or Mormons or any other group? Why do Muslims get preference?" he asked.
Graham's statements attracted mixed reactions. Some people, such as Shirley Bird, agreed with him. "This is a Christian country! Why are we building a special prayer room just for Muslims when there is already a room available for them there?"
Cheryl Throckmorton echoed her sentiments and commented, "Christians, we wrestle not against principalities and Powers, but the Devil himself!"
However, some Facebook users called Graham a liar and a deceitful person. Lollyann Residente answered Graham's questions: "Why? This room—which by the way is available for all to use—is no different than existing prayer/reflection rooms found in airports across the country. Don't see anyone fussing over those—and they have been there for eons. So has the chapel that is in the Orlando airport."
Facebook user Jay Richards had a different view on the issue: "Reverend Graham knows exactly how to push your buttons. He runs a nice, Christian happy story and you go 'aw' and send him money. Then he runs an angry story against gays, Muslims, atheists and/or the government and you get all riled up and say 'something must be done' and you send him even more money (anger motivates better than happiness). Fascinating."
